Clueless

Well, well, well--what exactly is the problem with Alicia Silverstone's $10-million deal ("Carrey! Schwarzenegger! Stallone! Silverstone?," Calendar, Aug. 12)? Perhaps people are naively confusing Silverstone with the character she plays in her most recent movie, "Clueless." They certainly seem to have forgotten her previous work in "The Crush," a very different type of vehicle. Is the problem that she's 18 years old, female, Jewish or all three? Does her demographic status mean that she can't open a picture?

An outdoor screening of Amy Heckerling's teen comedy "Clueless" and a dance-along screening of Luis Valdez's Ritchie Valens biopic "La Bamba" will be among the Los Angeles Film Festival's free community screenings, organizer Film Independent has announced. The community screenings will also include a program of Buster Keaton's "Sherlock Jr. " and "Cops" accompanied by the French garage rock band Magnetix; a presentation of "I Am Big Bird" with "Sesame Street" puppeteer Caroll Spinney in attendance; and the world premiere of the documentary "Limited Partnership," about two pioneers in the struggle for same-sex marriage.

Re "Spoiled Americans Here; Big Bad World Out There," Commentary, May 21: Norah Vincent claims that "stupidity has always been the unfortunate side effect of too much privilege." While that proposition is doubtful as a general one, in Vincent's specific case it seems to be accurate. Thus, in all seriousness, she claims that unless a person stops using lightbulbs, computers and paper, he has no right to demand that the government protect the environment. According to Vincent, if you don't see the obvious logic in this observation you are "utterly clueless."

Sometime after Kulwinder Singh lands in India today, he will call his son Parmeet to let him know he arrived safely. When he does, Parmeet will pick up the phone and say one of two things: “Dad, what would you do with $1 million?” Or simply… “Hey, you're a millionaire.” By Thursday afternoon, most of the country is already aware the sole $425.3-million jackpot winning Powerball ticket was sold at the Dixon Landing Chevron in Milpitas, making the store owner the lucky winner of a $1-million prize.

Does anyone but me see the irony in the cases of the idealistic but clueless 21-year-old John Walker Lindh, who just got a stiff federal prison sentence for fighting for the Taliban, and the equally idealistic and clueless 16-year-old Bahram Rahman, who left his home in Pakistan to fight for the Taliban and is now being held indefinitely in appalling conditions in Dasht-i-Shardian by Afghan warlords (July 21)? It would seem that their grieving parents have a good deal in common. Georgiana F. Coughlan Gardena

Re: "How I Made It: Mario Batali," Sept. 20: It's appalling for celebrity chef Batali to say, "Our check averages are under $100 . . . and you can always get a bowl of pasta for $15 to $18." He is obviously clueless about what the rest of the nation is experiencing during this recession. Vicky Hoffman Los Angeles

Re "Why we're clueless," Current, Feb. 18 Michael May almost hit the nail on the head. He said: "Someone in intelligence has to put himself in the enemy's shoes." We need people in our foreign embassies who at least speak the language. The Senate should not approve any person for ambassador unless the person speaks the language and traces his or her ancestry to that nation. There are people in the U.S. who came from every nation on Earth. Yet we send political hacks who were in the campaign of the newly elected president to fill a slot as ambassador.

Having made two of the most insightful, affectionate films about teenagers with "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and "Clueless," Amy Heckerling jumps on the most recent youth bandwagon with "Vamps. " Written and directed by Heckerling, "Vamps" isn't quite the low-hanging logline of "Clueless" meets "Twilight" though in some respects it is about the twilight of cluelessness - or how age and maturity do not necessarily equal the onset of fogey-dom, but rather offer a sense of greater understanding and seeing beyond oneself.

The article "Arbitron Poll Will Seek to Clarify Who's Listening" (May 28) was factual as far as it went. What the article fails to discuss is how archaic the Arbitron methodology is in a market as diverse in population (racially, ethnically, culturally) as Los Angeles. The upcoming Hispanic language test is one small step in the right direction, but it came about only because of extreme pressure brought by local broadcasters. Arbitron's concern has been to properly represent minority groups in its samples.

Re "All hail the clueless American," Opinion, April 24 Here's a sentence I never thought I would utter: Jonah Goldberg is right. The voting public has indeed been clueless. How else could George W. Bush have been elected president twice? Why else would people have bought into the absurd belief that we were doing the right thing in Iraq, that it was actually part of the war on terror, that victory was indeed at hand the day Bush declared it on the deck of that aircraft carrier? Who but the truly clueless would have given up the rights of citizenship in the interest of thwarting the boogeyman?

Rape insurance? Is that really a thing? Well, yes, though the anti-abortion legislators in Michigan who passed a law Wednesday making it necessary don't really call it that. They call it the “Abortion Insurance Opt-Out Act.” From now on in Michigan, all public health insurance plans and most private ones will not be able to automatically include coverage for abortion services in their comprehensive policies. Women will have to purchase separate riders in order to be covered for any sort of elective abortion.

If you're getting ready to take a flight during the holidays, be prepared for more than the usual confusion at airport screenings. The combination of infrequent fliers and the Transportation Security Administration's new initiative that allows randomly selected passengers to receive expedited screening - an initiative that will continue during the holidays - has the potential to create passenger pileup. The TSA has moved from a one-size-fits-all security approach by allowing some passengers (75 and older)

Unbuckling the mailbag: Question: In a parking lot? Why there? Seems a bit harsh. Twitter: @The SaintMunich Answer: I still can't get that puzzling piece out of my head. Why wouldn't nice-guy Pat Haden not even allow Lane Kiffin on the bus back to campus, if only to clean out his desk? Was he afraid Kiffin would barricade himself in his office and refuse to leave? USC campus security: Lane, put your laminated play sheet down and unlock the door. We'll count to 35, the time it took to get most of your plays into the huddle.

So, there I am, minding my own business watching the Indians-Rays game on TV on Wednesday when an image comes across the screen that is just unbelievable. Three Indians fans have painted their faces red to support their team. Because, you see, Indians have red skins (Redskins? Where have I heard that before?) Add exaggerated eyes and mouth, and you have a pretty offensive display. Yes, I get it. They are trying to portray lovable Indians mascot Chief Wahoo (himself a pretty offensive character)

August 21, 2013 | By Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times Television Critic

Ever since "Three Men and a Baby" hit the big screen in 1987, scripted shows have been exploring the hilarious aspects of bumbling men as primary caregivers. What seemed fresh, perhaps, when "Full House" debuted, now has very mixed results - though ABC Family's lame to middling "Baby Daddy" was recently given a third season, NBC's higher profile "Guys With Kids" was swiftly canceled and I don't even want to talk about what happened to "Up All Night. " Actually I do, because what happened to "Up All Night" offers a primer into the whole "perils of parenting" genre of television into which A&E's new reality show "Modern Dads" enters Wednesday.

Re "Filner is on his own for legal bills," July 31 Mayor Bob Filner of San Diego, facing accusations of sexual harassment, says he is entering therapy for two weeks to learn how to behave better. It reminds me of someone who once asked if a person on a desert island dying of thirst, who saw a glass of water, would think it's enough to save him. Filner was delusional to think the City Council would pay his legal bills with taxpayer money. He should resign immediately because of his alleged misconduct.

So, they have taken that Alicia Silverstone movie "Clueless" and turned it into a miniseries called "Emma," set in England in the early 1800s, and, what's more, they've issued a novelization by someone named Jane Austen. There is a lot more talking in the book, but it is really quite well done and covers all the major points of the miniseries, which is also excellent. They really capture that original "Clueless" spirit. Or perhaps I have that backward. Hang on while I Wikipedia that.

Effervescent, unflappable and supremely pleased with herself, Cher (delightfully played by Alicia Silverstone, left with Stacey Dash) is the comic centerpiece of "Clueless," a wickedly funny 1995 teen-age farce from writer-director Amy Heckerling that, like its heroine, turns out to have more to it than anyone could anticipate. "Clueless" is a shrewd modern reworking of some of the themes and plot lines of Jane Austen's beloved "Emma." (HBO Saturday at 8 p.m.).

In the astute new road-trip movie "Crystal Fairy," set mostly in Chile's Atacama Desert, Michael Cera plays an archetypal Ugly American. In fact, Cera plays several versions of the Ugly American popularized through generations of movies, novels and plays. His fabulously annoying character, Jamie, who's obsessed with experiencing the ultimate high by drinking mescaline brewed from the rare San Pedro cactus, is also the Stoner American, the Entitled American and, perhaps most familiar of all, the Materially Bloated But Spiritually Malnourished American Desperately Seeking Enlightenment.

The Boy Scouts of America is voting on whether to allow gay boys to be Scouts. Which is, of course, really stupid, because gay boys are already Scouts, and have been for many years, even if Scouting chooses to think otherwise. Still, this is a serious issue. The future of Scouting may hang in the balance. Or not. After all, wasn't it Groucho Marx who said, “I don't want to belong to any club that will accept people like me as a member”? If I may, though, I'd like to suggest we may be ignoring the real problem with the Boy Scouts and other groups, such as the Indian Princesses.